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NO
2– 2010
HIGHEST STANDARDS IN FINE ART SHIPPING
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IN-HOUSE ART HANDLING TRAINING
As
many at ICEFAT know, Bob Crozier has been passionately pursuing
the formation of Best
Practices for the Fine Arts Storage and Services industry since
the inception of our company back
in 1976. A few years ago, as an integral part of this pursuit,
Bob designated a single person at
Crozier Fine Arts responsible for a comprehensive program of art
handling training. Her name is
Kelly Garretson. She came to Crozier as an art handler almost
five years ago with a degree in Fine
Art. As many do, she started art handling in our flagship West
20th Street warehouse. However,
her skill and leadership abilities were immediately apparent and
so she was a natural fit for this
new post.
Ms. Garretson
is responsible for documenting our practices, training all staff
on art handling and checking adherence to our practices. She provides
re-training and updates to our documentation as new methods, materials
and challenges are introduced, keeping pace with the ever changing
contemporary art world’s new media and techniques. ICEFAT
News sat down with Ms. Garretson to find out more about the training
program.
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When did Crozier Fine Arts decide a formal training program
was needed and what were the reasons behind it?
We believe firmly at Crozier that in order to assure the safety of
artwork, we must assure that any of our art handlers applies the same
standard methods. The art handlers we hire usually come with
prior experience and a foundational knowledge of art handling. While
this is helpful, the drawback
is that different art handlers arrive at our company with different
methods.
Previously, training was done by individual managers and lead art
handlers in an apprenticeship-
style system. While that allowed a lot of individual attention, it
would contribute to the variations we were seeing.
So in January of 2008 we gathered all the great minds of our company
together to discuss the best
practices in a broad sense and in specific situations. We covered
materials, techniques and equipment and formalized our lexicon to
improve communication. What exactly does “slip-casing”
mean, for example, and when is it an acceptable form of packing?
Once that document was complete, I held the first company-wide Basic
Training session in April
of 2008. We’ve been actively holding Basic, Intermediate, and
Advanced art handling sessions
ever since. |
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How
does the training program work? How do the art handlers demonstrate
their proficiencies?
In order to provide a hands-on learning experience, we mocked-up several
different types of artwork, each with specific characteristics that
would require extra attention to detail when wrapping,
handling, installing and so on.
The Basic Session is ninety percent visual presentation. It is intended
to be an introduction to the terms, materials and techniques that
a Crozier art handler would encounter on a daily basis.
The Intermediate and Advanced sessions, however, involve primarily
active participation. In these sessions everyone practices more complicated
techniques like rolling, folding, re-stretching and installing.
While the Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced session take a full-day,
I’ve also developed little onehour “continuing education”
presentations. This allows us to target specific skills.
Our “Training Updates” are another aspect of the program.
These are presented like a newsletter to
staff and past examples have included A-Frame safety and Art Handling
in an Emergency Response.
Of course as the company grows, our training program grows with it.
Annual refresher courses and
new employee training are always on the schedule. |
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Who
gets trained?
All employees
who deal with art in some capacity or another –from installation
teams to client
services - participate in these sessions. Having everyone involved
brings a variety of perspectives to
the table and facilitates collaboration within the company.
What
other uses are there for the program?
We’ve used information from these training sessions
to give presentations to groups with a peripheral involvement in
Commercial Fine Arts. For example, we’ve given several presentations
to insurance companies looking for a better understanding of the
collections they’re insuring.
What
are the hardest parts of the training?
The hardest part is trying to cover all the nuances of
art handling. Fine and Decorative arts have so many unique characteristics
that it is impossible to identify and make any one rule for all
of them. Instead we train our art handlers how to look for characteristics
that will inform their handling and provide a solid understanding
of how to respond accordingly. Active observation and forward
thinking are what I consider to be two of the most important qualities
of a good art handler.
What
are the benefits you’ve seen?
In an industry where you handle priceless cultural artifacts
on a daily basis, the last thing you want is a team walking blindly
or mindlessly into a project. |
Personally it’s gratifying to see our staff take an active
interest in the projects they’re working on. Our staff demonstrates
this by combining their own experiences and knowledge with the principles
they learn in these sessions and then applying them to everyday
operations. It has confirmed for me that we have a team of professionals
invested in a common goal: doing their job to the
highest degree of excellence.
Nicole Bouchard
Crozier Fine Arts, New York
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